“This is a very strong group with high basketball IQs and athleticism and will fit with our program very well.”
I'd be very surprised if Thompson gets playing time over Morton this upcoming season.
The 3, 4 and 5 could be 50/50 with Sasha / Brandon, the three headed monster and Zach / Tre, but Ivey and Hunter will carry the majority of minutes (30+ mpg each) at the other two guard spots. If that leaves 20mpg in the backcourt my guess is that Sasha and Brandon will eat into some of those minutes and Ethan and IT will split the remainder.
There is no doubt in my mind that Ethan is a much better than Eric. We will see if he can deliver. This absolutely is not me bashing Eric as a player, just think Ethan will be on the floor when it matters. I will take a friendly wager if needed.
Ethan game one versus Eric game one? That’s laughable. I’d probably take my chances and bet on Ethan as a senior versus Eric as a senior but Eric will be much more productive than Ethan this year and it won’t be close.
Gambling is Illleeeeeeeegal here at Bushwood and I never slice........ha ha
You kind of twisted my words a bit. Like I said, this is not a bash on Eric. I love him as a player for Purdue. I said Ethan is a better player. There are no timelines that I am thinking of. Last year was basically EM's red shirt year (health reasons) but he got to play a little. Eric will get the nod to start the season for sure, but I expect EM to gain Min. as the year goes on. I could also be 100% wrong. No shame in that. If I am wrong not that big of a deal. If I am right, Purdue is in a much better position to win big this year.
Twisting your words was not my intent. I guess I could have phrased it as a question to ask whether you mean that Ethan is a better player now (I don't know how to measure that other than offensive and defensive productivity) , or if you mean that Ethan is more talented or will be a more productive player in the future.
I hope this is the case. Thompson can have games where he comes alive offensively. However, he does not have the body to match up with any teams' guards that play physical. He is an absolute defensive liability, when this is the case, and physical guards are now the norm anymore for most teams.
That's what I meant. Ethan will be a better more productive player in time. Don't know when, he could emerge this year but most likely the following. For me, it's all about his size and strength and I think that translates into being a better Power five type player. It would be a different story is Eric was a dead eye shooter, but he is not.
I'm in. Defense wins in the BIg 10. Hunters not going anywhere.
If we get "bad" EH like we saw down the stretch and Ethan can't get minutes because he isn't better than that, we have a problem. Fixed
Problem with this year’s team or problem with Ethan? Agree on the former, ‘bad’ EH playing a ton of minutes doesn’t bode well for the team’s ceiling. Disagree on the latter, displacing someone with EH’s experience and defensive prowess, even if he continues to struggle offensively, is a big ask of Ethan at this point in his career.If we get "bad" EH like we saw down the stretch and Ethan can't get minutes because he isn't better than that, we have a problem. Fixed
I have high hopes for Ethan this year.
But his opportunity won't be taking over as defensive stopper anytime soon (ever).
What are you basing Morton being a better player off of? Nothing he did last year suggests he will be better than hunter.
Not sure what you think you fixed?? Last I checked CMP decides who plays based on his opinion of who is better. If Ethan isn't better in Coach's opinion than bad EH, it isn't good for us.If we get "bad" EH like we saw down the stretch and Ethan can't get minutes because he isn't better than that, we have a problem. Fixed
I have high hopes for Ethan this year.
But his opportunity won't be taking over as defensive stopper anytime soon (ever).
Team. If Hunter struggles again offensively (still b great D) and Ethan STILL can't beat that out, then the teams ceiling is "likely" significantly lower than many of us are expecting. Need at least one of the two to be significantly better.
The players decide. Of course it's the coaches decision but as they will ALWAYS tell you, the players make the decisions with their play on the court. There are some among us (not me) that feel that Coach P is sometimes wrong in his pt allocations. My comment reflected that.
Agreed, I am not sure what it is I am using to make this assessment. I think we saw about 40% of what EM can do as a player at this level. He looks to be much stronger and more explosive in the clips of him I watched this summer. At the end of the day its a good problem to have. Hunter is going to get his minutes this year, I just believe EM will emerge as a guy you need on the floor in certain situations.
Fair answer. Guess I just disagree. I think Morton is at least one more year away from being a contributor and don't anticipate him taking any minutes from hunter this year.
Better player? No. Better point guard? Possible. Love Eric but he’s not a natural point.
I feel his biggest challenge down the stretch was not using his mid-range jumper. He seemingly forced longer shots instead of driving and opening up the defense.
Completely agree. We saw a heavy dose of that backcourt with EH at the point before Jaden came on, no reason it can't be run with Jaden at the point. I think that EH will be much better offensively this year and will play a ton of minutes and I still think we're likely to see a lot of games where Sasha and Brandon are on the court at the same time for 10 mpg.
You're not wrong regarding scoring but this has been discussed here many times. If you want to be a FF or NC team you need both. I'm not going to dig up the stats but the vast majority of the top performing teams in the tournament over the last 20 years have been very highly ranked in both offensive and defensive efficiency.
I don't have stats for mid-range versus other two point field goal attempts, but Eric was incredibly inconsistent in both his number of two point field goals attempted per game and his efficiency in executing those attempts.
Yes. He also shot much better from three as a sophomore than he did last season. When EH is efficient offensively, hitting his shots and not turning the ball over, he provides exactly what the team needs at the one, but when he is off, I prefer IT’s reliability. Hopefully, he can stay consistent this season.
